Financial Literacy for Women, A case of Malawi

Chakanika, Precious and Qutieshat, Abubaker (2025): Financial Literacy for Women, A case of Malawi.

Abstract

The paper presents findings from a study carried out to assess the level of financial literacy among women in Malawi. A survey method was used, whereby a questionnaire was developed and administered through Google Forms. The findings indicate that financial literacy for women in Malawi is moderate. The study recommends more trainings on financial literacy for women in Malawi, and the findings indicate a willingness among women to participate in such trainings. The study also recommends learning institutions, Ministry of finance, financial institutions and other players should enhance involvement of in financial literacy programs which should target both young and adult populations. The study will help inform other similar studies in the future considering that there is limited literature on the topic in Malawi and Africa at large. This research is the only one that has been carried out to indicate the levels of financial literacy for Women in Malawi.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Budget Management, Financial Behavior, Financial Literacy, Financial Management, Saving Culture, Finance, Malawi, Africa, Women
• Subjects: D - Microeconomics > D1 - Household Behavior and Family Economics > D14 - Household Saving; Personal Finance; D - Microeconomics > D9 - Intertemporal Choice > D91 - Intertemporal Household Choice ; Life Cycle Models and Saving; G - Financial Economics > G0 - General > G02 - Behavioral Finance: Underlying Principles

References

Aggarwalla, S.K; Barua, S.K and Varma, Jacob, Financial Literacy among Working Young in Urban India pp , (1-27)W.P No.2013-10-02

Al-Tamimi, H.A.H., 2006. Factors influencing individual investor behavior: an empirical study of the UAE financial markets. Bus. Rev. 5.

Amari, A., Jarboui, M., 2013. Financial literacy and decision making: an overview from Tunisia. Int. J. Inf. Bus. Manag. 5.

Amari, M.J.A., 2015. Financial literacy and portfolio diversification: an observation from the Tunisian stock market. Int. J. Bank Mark. 33, 808–822.

Andrew C. Worthington (2003), Predicting financial literacy in Australia, School of Accounting and Finance, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia

Annamaria Lusardi, Olivia S. Mitchell, Vilsa Curto (2009) Financial literacy and financial sophistication among older Americans, Working Paper 15469, NATIONAL BUREAU OF ECONOMIC RESEARCH, http://www.nber.org/papers/w15469

Arrondel, L. & Debbich, M. & Savignac, F. (2013). Financial Literacy and Financial Planning in France. Numeracy, Vol.6, Issue 2, Article No. 8.

Astuti, I., Trinugroho, P., (2016.) Financial literacy and engagement in banking. J. Econ. Econ. Educ. Res. 17, 1–6.

Atkinson, A.and F. Messy (2012), “Measuring Financial Literacy: Results of the OECD/ International Network on Financial Education (INFE) Pilot Study”, OECD Working Papers on Finance, Insurance and Private Pensions, No. 15, OECD Publishing.http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/5K9csfs90fr4-en

Barua, R., & Sane, R. (2014). Repayment in microfinance: The role of financial literacy and caste.

Beckmann, E. (2013). Financial Literacy and Household Savings in Romania. Numeracy, Vol. 6, Issue 2, Article 9.

Bernheim, D. (1998). Financial Illiteracy, Education and Retirement Saving. In O. Mitchell and S. Schieber (eds.), Living with Defined Contribution Pensions. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.

Bernheim, D., and D. Garrett, (2003). The effects of financial education in the workplace: Evidence from a survey of households, Journal of Public Economics, 87, 1487-1519.

Bhushan, P. & Medury, Y. (2013). Financial Literacy and its Determinants. International Journal of Engineering, Business and Enterprise Applications (IJEBEA), 4(2), pp.155- 160.

Braunstein, S. and Welch, C. (2002), “Financial literacy: an overview of practice, research, and policy”, Federal Reserve Bulletin, November, pp. 445-57,

Chen, H., & Volpe, R., (1998), An analysis of personal financial literacy among college students. Financial Services Review, 7(2), 107-128.

Ciumara, Tudor; (2012) , Factors influencing individual financial decisions : A literature review, Centre for Financial and Monetary Research, Bucharest, retrieval date 9/12/17

Cole, S. and Fernando, N. (2008), “Assessing the importance of financial literacy”, Asian Development Bank Quarterly News Letter: Finance for the Poor, Vol. 9 No. 3, pp. 1-8.

Disney, R., Gathergood, J., (2013.) Financial literacy and consumer credit portfolios. J. Bank. Financ. 37, 2246–2254.

Fachrudin K.R. and Fachrudin K.A. (2016), “The Influence of Education And Experience Toward Investment Decision With Moderated By Financial Literacy”, Polish Journal Of Management Studies, Vol.14 No.2.

Faten Zoghlami and Hamadi Matoussi (2009), “ A Survey of the Tunisian Investors’ Behavior, International Research Journal of Finance and Economics, Issue 31, September 2009, p.66-82.

Gordon Clark, Huu Duong, Paul Gerrans, Paul Lajbcygier, Carly Moulang, Maria Strydom, John Vaz and Jayasinghe Wickramanayake (2013), “Investment Behaviours: Theory and Evidence”, CSIRO‐Monash Superannuation Research Cluster.

Hawati Janor, Rubayah Yakob, Noor Azuan Hashim, Zanariah, Che Aniza Che Wel (2016), “Financial literacy and investment decisions in Malaysia and United Kingdom: A comparative analysis”, Malaysian Journal of Society and Space 12 issue 2 (106 - 118), ISSN 2180-2491.

Huddleston, C.A. & Danes, S.M. (1999). Impact evaluation of a financial literacy program: evidence for needed educational policy changes, Consumer Interests Annual, 45, 109-115.

Hussein A. Hassan Al-Tamimi and Al Anood Bin Kalli (2009), “Financial literacy and investment decisions of UAE investors”, The Journal of Risk Finance, Vol. 10 No. 5, 2009, pp. 500-516.

Jariwala, H. V. (2013), "To study the level of financial literacy and its impact on investment decision – An in-depth analysis of investors in gujarat state” V. M. Patel Institute of Management, Ganpat University, Gujarat

Jeyaram, S., & Mustapha, M. (2015), Financial literacy and demographic factors. Journal of Technology Management and Business, 2(1),1-8.

Joseph Job. (2012),"Financial literacy of economically marginalised people of kerala" School of Gandhian Thought and Development Studies Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam, Kerala

Killyanni, Abdul Latheef and Sivaraman; The perception reality gap in financial literacy: Evidence from the most literate state in India, school of management studies, National institute of Technology Calicut, Kozhikode, 673601, Kerala, India,

Klapper, L. & Panos, G. A. (2011). Financial Literacy and Retirement Planning: The Russian Case. Policy Research Working Paper 5827.

Lusardi, A., and Mitchell, O. S. January, (2007). Financial Literacy and Retirement Preparedness: Evidence and Implications for Financial Education. Business Economics, 42(1), 35-44.

Lusardi, Annamaria and Olivia S. Mitchell. 2007. “Baby Boomer Retirement Security: The Roles of Planning, Financial Literacy, and Housing Wealth.” Journal of Monetary Economics 54, 205-224

Lusardi, Annamaria and Olivia S. Mitchell. 2007. “Financial Literacy and Retirement Planning: New Evidence from the RAND American Life Panel.” NBER Working Paper.

Lusardi, Annamaria and Olivia S. Mitchell. (2007). “Financial Literacy and Retirement Preparedness: Evidence and Implications for Financial Education.” Business Economics 42, 35-44.

Lusardi, A., and Mitchell, O. S. October, (2007). Financial Literacy and Retirement Planning: New Evidence from the Rand American Life Panel. Michigan Retirement Research Center Research Paper, No. WP 2007-157.

Lusardi, Annamaria and Olivia Mitchell (2008), “How Much Do People Know About Economics and Finance? Financial Illiteracy and the Importance of Financial Education,” Policy Brief n. 5, MRRC, March 2008.

Lusardi, Annamaria and Olivia S. Mitchell. (2008.) “Planning and Financial Literacy: How Do Women Fare?” American Economic Review P&P, 98, 413-417

Lusardi, Annamaria and Olivia S. Mitchell. (2009.) “How Ordinary Consumers Make Complex Economic Decisions: Financial Literacy and Retirement Readiness.” Cambridge, MA: NBER Working Paper.

Lusardi, A., and Mitchell, O. S. (2011). Financial Literacy and Planning: Implications for Retirement Well-being. In A. Lusardi and O Mitchell (Eds.), Financial Literacy. Implications for Retirement Security and the Financial Marketplace. Oxford University Press, 17-39.

Lusardi, Annamaria;(2013) Financial Literacy Around The world, Insights: Financial Capability, April 2013,

Mason, C. L. and Wilson, R. M. S. (2002) Conceptualizing Financial Literacy in Making Accounting Education Work

Mading Garang (2016), “The Effect of Financial Literacy on Investment Decisions In The Juba City South Sudan”, University of Nairobi.

Mahdzan, N. S. & Tabiani, S. (2013). The Impact of Financial Literacy on Individual Saving: An Exploratory Study in the Malaysian Context. Transformations in Business and Economics, Vol. 12, No. 1(28), pp.41-55.

Nirmala Lee, (2010) Financial literacy and financial literacy education, what might be the components of an effective financial literacy curriculum? Department of Lifelong and Comparative Education Faculty of Policy and Society Institute of Education University of London

Noctor, M., Stoney, S. and Stradling, R. (1992), Financial Literacy: A Discussion of Concepts and Competencies of Financial Literacy and Opportunities for Its Introduction into Young People’s Learning, National Foundation for Education Research, London.

Noctor, M., Stoney, S. and Stradling, R. (1992) Financial Literacy, National Westminster Bank,

Olima, B. (2013). Effect of Financial Literacy on Personal Financial Management on Kenya Revenue Authority Employees in Nairobi, Unpublished MBA Project, University of Nairobi

Rooij, M. v. & Lusardi, A. & Alessie, R. (2011), Financial Literacy and Retirement Planning in the Netherlands. Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, 32(2011), pp.593-608.

Rooij, M. V. & Lusardi, A. & Alessie, R. (2011). Financial Literacy, Retirement Planning and Household Wealth. DNB Working Paper, Working Paper No. 313. August 2011.

Sharma, Anupama and Joshi, Bhavesh; (2015) Women’s economic empowerment and financial decisions: Observations and perceptions, Jan.2015, Indian Journal of Applied Research, Vol.5, issue 1, ISSN-2249-555X, PP 298-300

Taqadus, Bashir; Asba, Arshad; Aleena, Nazir; and Naghmana, Afzal; (October 2013), Financial literacy and influence of psychosocial factors, European Scientific Journal, edition vol.9, No.28 ISSN: 1857 – 7881 (Print) e - ISSN 1857- 7431

T. V. Raman and Kanan Budhiraja (2017), “The Potential Impact of Marketing on Preference of Financial Instruments”, International Journal of Applied Business and Economics Research, ISSN 0972-7302, Vol. 15, No.1.

Vijay Laxmi el al., (2018) International Journal of Research in Management, Economics and Commerce, ISSN 2250-057X, Impact Factor: 6.384, Volume 08, Issue 1, January 2018, Page 89-94

Worthington, A. C. (2006), Predicting financial literacy in Australia. Financial Services Review, 15(1), spring 2006, pp.59-79.